Box Score St. Mary's City, Md. – The St. Mary's College of Maryland men's lacrosse team returned to the win column Saturday afternoon with their first Capital Athletic Conference victory of the season. The Seahawks used a six-goal third quarter to seal a 17-9 triumph over Wesley College.
Senior captain Conor Jordan (Rockville, Md./Rockville) had a solid afternoon for St. Mary's with game-bests of six goals and three assists for a career-best nine points. Senior captain Austin Toland (Cockeysville, Md./St. Paul's School) also had a career day with his second hat trick of the season plus a career-high three assists for a career-best six points.
Wesley (4-7, 0-3 CAC) drew first blood with two unanswered goals from midfielders Sam Seibert (New Castle, Del./William Penn) and Zachary Farnell (Centreville, Md./Queen Anne's). The Seahawks responded with two straight from Toland and senior attackman Nick Wilkinson (Huntingtown, Md./Calverton) and the first quarter finished tied at 3-3.
St. Mary's (3-5, 1-2 CAC) scored the first two of the second period and headed into halftime with a 7-5 advantage as Jordan picked up two and assisted on another in a 4-2 run.
Seibert finished the afternoon with three goals while senior midfielder Jack Redefer (Lewes, Del./Sussex Tech) added two goals and two assists. Sophomore midfielder Will Fingles (Cockeysville, Md./Dulaney) chipped in two as well.
It was all Seahawks in the third stanza as the team rattled off six in a row for a 13-5 advantage. Jordan shined in this quarter with two goals and two assists while Wilkinson contributed a goal and an assist. The Wolverines avoided the third-quarter goose egg when junior midfielder Nate Gemmato (Middletown, Md./Delaware Military Academy) tallied his eighth of the season with 11 seconds on the clock.
St. Mary's extended its lead to 10 in the fourth quarter and never looked back, edging the Wolverines 4-3 in the final 15 minutes.
The Seahawks outshot Wesley, 48-28, and won the ground ball battle, 40-33, as junior midfielder Mike Becraft (Rockville, Md./Good Counsel) scooped up a career-best eight loose balls. Senior midfielder Teddy Secor (California, Md./Calverton) won 13-of-20 face-offs and grabbed three ground balls as St. Mary's posted a .621 (18-of-29) face-off win percentage for the game.
Wesley's man-down defense was no match for the Seahawks who were 4-of-5 in their extra-man opportunities. St. Mary's killed both of the Wolverines chances in the second half.
Junior goalie Max Alderman (Baltimore, Md./Calvert Hall) needed just six saves, two ground balls, and one caused turnover in St. Mary's third win of the season while senior Cody Ireland (St. Michael's, Md./Easton) had 11 stops and two ground balls for Wesley.
The Seahawks will be back in action on Wednesday, March 30 as they travel to No. 4 York College of Pennsylvania for another CAC tilt at 4:00 p.m.
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